Last week I discussed Colorado Senator Cory Gardner (R) and his blockade of Department of Justice appointments on The Marijuana Times Show. Senator Gardner initiated his blockade after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced his action to rescind the famous “Cole Memo” and its protections of state-legal marijuana programs. Now, Senator Gardner says he is partially lifting his blockade as a sort of show of good faith after conversations with the DOJ. “Since the Department of Justice rescinded the Cole memo, I have been working with the Department’s leadership, including Deputy Assistant Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and the Acting United...

Earlier this month, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions made the move to rescind the Cole Memo, which had been protecting states’ rights to legalize marijuana without fear of prosecution from the federal government. Since then we’ve seen an outpouring of support for legal cannabis – from Vermont’s bold move to legalize marijuana, to former Republican Congressman Ron Paul calling Sessions “un-American.” Now, 54 lawmakers, both Democrat and Republican alike, have sent a letter to President Trump, asking him to direct Sessions to back-off when it comes to state-legal cannabis. “We write with urgent concern regarding the recent steps taken...

With the first medical cannabis dispensary officially open in Pennsylvania, of course there is a buzz in the state surrounding the legality of the emerging industry. Despite all of the threatening actions and out of touch statements coming from U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions regarding legal cannabis, patients and business owners in the Keystone state can rest assured knowing that at least some of their elected officials will protect the rights of the citizens. One of those officials is Pennsylvania state Attorney General Josh Shapiro, who defended the medical marijuana program in an interview with KDKA-TV, a CBS affiliate...

The state of Massachusetts is one of a handful of states that voted to legalize the possession and sale of cannabis in the 2016 elections – and while the state has delayed making commercial sales of cannabis available, they have still been working towards that end goal. However, since U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions made the decision earlier this month to rescind the policies protecting state-legal cannabis businesses from prosecution, there has been a lot of uncertainty, especially when the top U.S. Attorney in the state was appointed by President Donald Trump and AG Sessions. “I can say that...

Last week’s announcement from Attorney General Jeff Sessions that he is opening the door for U.S. Attorneys to use their own discretion when it comes to going after marijuana businesses in states where they are legal continues to provoke reaction from all parts of the political spectrum. Former Republican Congressman and Presidential contender Ron Paul has weighed in, and during an interview on CNN he proceeded to rip into Sessions and his decision on legal cannabis. “He represents something that is so un-American, as far as I’m concerned,” Paul said, referring to the U.S. Attorney General. “The war on...

After a crusade to try and repeal Obama-era policies protecting states’ marijuana laws, Attorney General Jeff Sessions has finally come to announce that they “are bound by” current policies, which will remain in effect for the time being. “Our policy is the same, really, fundamentally as the Holder-Lynch policy, which is that the federal law remains in effect and a state can legalize marijuana for its law enforcement purposes but it still remains illegal with regard to federal purposes,” Forbes reported Sessions as saying, referring to previous attorneys general and their policy. This announcement (of sorts) comes after months of...